Heating aid reduction a cold move by government

It appears that the president and Congress are prepared to leave our most vulnerable elderly and infirm citizens out in the cold this winter — literally.

It appears that the president and Congress are prepared to leave our most vulnerable elderly and infirm citizens out in the cold this winter — literally.

Our legislative and executive branches, which haven't agreed on anything since 2010, seem to have united behind the terrible idea of cutting the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program in half for the fiscal year, beginning Oct. 1.

Here is your proof that our nation has lost its moral compass. The price now for growing old, for getting sick, for living paycheck to paycheck, is to slowly freeze to death, or to be forced to choose between heat and food or medicine.

President Barack Obama proposed the idea last year, guided by the false assumption that oil prices would go down. Instead, they have gone up 25 percent since 2010 to an average of $3.80 a gallon. This means that on average it will cost families $3,300 to heat their homes this winter, up $500 over last year.

Despite this harsh reality, Congress is moving ahead with the proposed cuts to LIHEAP, and fuel assistance programs in Maine and New Hampshire are preparing for the worst.

Maine, which gave needy families an average of $800 in fuel assistance last winter, is preparing to lower that amount. New Hampshire has indicated it will cut the number of families qualified to receive the fuel aid.

Dale McCormick who oversees Maine's fuel assistance programs, told The Associated Press: "These are people who live close to the margin. They will have to cut food or medicine or transportation."

Sen. Olympia Snowe of Maine has sounded the alarm.

"In this difficult budgetary climate, where we must do more with less to put our nation back on a sustainable fiscal path, it is critical that families reliant on critical heating assistance this winter won't bear the brunt of the federal spending cuts."

We urge the entire New England congressional delegation to unite in protest over these cuts.

The federal fuel assistance money is already insufficient.

Over the past four years, our generous readers have donated more than $160,000 through Seacoast Media Group's Gift of Warmth program, which allows Rockingham Community Action to help families in crisis who don't qualify for fuel assistance because their household income exceeds $16,000 a year.

This year, we plan to expand the program to allow readers to donate to either Rockingham Community Action or the Fuel and More program, which serves our readers in southern Maine.

Given the cold winds blowing this way from Washington, we'll need to kick off this program a little earlier than our normal Thanksgiving start date.

It's a shame congress and the president seem to lack the warmth and compassion of our many Gift of Warmth contributors.

Never miss a story

Choose the plan that's right for you.
Digital access or digital and print delivery.

Alerts

Advertise

Original content available for non-commercial use under a Creative Commons license, except where noted.
seacoastonline.com ~ 111 New Hampshire Ave., Portsmouth, NH 03801 ~ Privacy Policy ~ Terms Of Service